Investigating Potential Gender Differences in First-Year Engineering Students’ Academic Motivation and Homework Submission Behavior

Previous studies have shown that there exists a difference in undergraduate students’ academic motivation based on gender. Specifically, females have been shown to be more extrinsically motivated than their male peers in a university setting (D’Lima, et. al, 2014). However, little research has been done to examine the effects of gender relevant to academic motivation in gamified systems. The study of gamification systems is important due to the increase in their use within educational activities. This study leverages the Jones MUSIC Model of Academic Motivation and gamification profiles to answer the research question: How does gender influence student behavior and motivation towards an online gamified homework platform? Academic motivation was determined through student responses to the MUSIC Model survey. Behavior was measured through submission behavior including the number of attempts needed to complete a problem and the frequency of submission. The mastery-based homework portal that was employed in a first-year engineering design course provided data on the number of attempts needed for each student to successfully complete an assignment. In addition, the rate at which students submitted homework assignments within the self-pacing environment was also recorded. This information was utilized to extract gamification profiles to describe the behavior of students over time. The data was analyzed using descriptive statistics to determine if any meaningful differences existed. Overall, it was shown that females have consistently higher overall academic motivation scores than males. It was also shown that males have a wider distribution of gamification profiles, ranging from disheartened behavior to overachieving behavior. Females, on the other hand, were more likely to have a consistent homework submission behavior

Gamification and player profiles among faculty in Mexico

Objectives: Analysis of the player profiles of professors is a fruitful line of research because player profiles may influence the design of gamified situations. We studied a sample of 243 university professors in Mexico to analyze the player profiles with which they identify and those they consider most effective didactically in gamified situations. Method: Descriptive quantitative research was used to analyze the distributions of the responses to a questionnaire given to a group of 243 professors from different Mexican universities. These responses have been statistically analyzed by computing the proportions of player profile choices and applying Pearson’s chi-square test of independence to identify significant differences in these choices. Results: 42.4% of the participants identify as Explorers, the most frequent player profile among the participants. However, about 15.6% of them consider that their player profile is not the most suitable for learning. Player profiles chosen by the Mexican professors diverge from the player profiles of the students described in previous studies. Significant differences by gender, area of knowledge, and previous training in gamification are also identified. Conclusion: There is a strong gap between the player profiles of the participating professors and the profile that, in their opinion, is most suitable for learning. In addition, it has been identified that gender, area of knowledge, and previous experience in the use of gamification are influential factors in the player profiles of the professors. Implication for Practice: The training of professors in gamification should be adapted to the specificities of each area of knowledge. This will allow professors to develop pedagogical skills in gamification that will help them adapt gamified didactic situations to the needs of students

Convergence of Gamification and Machine Learning: A Systematic Literature Review

Recent developments in human–computer interaction technologies raised the attention towards gamification techniques, that can be defined as using game elements in a non-gaming context. Furthermore, advancement in machine learning (ML) methods and its potential to enhance other technologies, resulted in the inception of a new era where ML and gamification are combined. This new direction thrilled us to conduct a systematic literature review in order to investigate the current literature in the field, to explore the convergence of these two technologies, highlighting their influence on one another, and the reported benefits and challenges. The results of the study reflect the various usage of this confluence, mainly in, learning and educational activities, personalizing gamification to the users, behavioral change efforts, adapting the gamification context and optimizing the gamification tasks. Adding to that, data collection for machine learning by gamification technology and teaching machine learning with the help of gamification were identified. Finally, we point out their benefits and challenges towards streamlining future research endeavors.publishedVersio

Why so serious?:game-based learning in health profession education: state of the art and future directions

If you look around carefully, you see a lot of use of game elements that aim to motivate people towards a certain behaviour. From smileys on posts that aim to lower your driving speed, to earning stars in language learning apps. Game-based learning is the use of game elements to make learning more attractive and to encourage people to continue their learning. This is logical right? The longer you learn, the better the outcome. Or not? This doctoral thesis examines the effects of using game-based learning in medical education. Why and when should it be applied? We have investigated whether it is advisable to develop a game suitable for everyone. We discovered that there are 5 different game personas (player types): competitors, socializers, social achievers, explorers and trolls. Everyone has their own preferences when it comes to social interactions and achieving goals within a game. From this we were able to develop a taxonomy, which has been tested at almost all medical universities in the Netherlands. It shows that medical students are mainly socially oriented players. While most game based learnings are not at all. This doctoral research can offer perspective in current developments, gives direction where it could go, but also has a critical note on the use of game-based learning that is should not be applied too much

5th International Open and Distance Learning Conference Proceedings Book = 5. Uluslararası Açık ve Uzaktan Öğrenme Konferansı Bildiri Kitabı

In celebration of our 40th anniversary in open and distance learning, we are happy and proud to organize the 5th International Open & Distance Learning Conference- IODL 2022, which was held at Anadolu University, Eskişehir, Türkiye on 28-30 September 2022. After the conferences in 2002, 2006, 2010, and 2019, IODL 2022 is the 5th IODL event hosted by Anadolu University Open Education System (OES)